The present invention relates to a computerized transfer apparatus. In particular, the invention concerns an apparatus for transferring plant seedlings between seedling growing trays.
In commercial green houses, plants are typically grown in what is called a seed flat which is essentially a tray having a number of small cavities containing a plug of soil. The seed flat is seeded with a particular plant which is tended until the seedling has grown large enough for commercial sale. At that point, the seedling is ready to be transferred to a pot flat which is generally provided to commercial outlets. Typically, the pot flat will have fewer recesses than the seed flat but each recess will have a larger volume to hold more soil and accommodate a larger root ball as the seedling continues to grow. The smaller recesses in the seed flat save grower's space and reduces watering requirements over the pot flat. However, commercial considerations dictate that the seedling be transferred to a pot flat.
A typical seed flat might measure 14 recesses across and 29 recesses along its length so that up to 406 seedlings can be grown in a single seed flat. A typical pot flat, on the other hand, may have only 4 recesses across its width and 12 recesses along its length, for a total of 48 recesses to receive seedlings transplanted from the seed flat. The transfer of seedlings from the seed flat to the pot flat has presented a unique problem to the industry. It is important that the transfer occur with minimal disturbance to the plant seedling and its root ball. Moreover, since the pot flat is often sold directly to the final consumer, the pot flat must be completely filled with seedlings. In prior transfer apparatus, errors in the seed flat are generally propagated to the pot flat. These errors may include an empty recess in the seed flat or a badly oriented seedling. On the other hand, the need for higher transfer rates has tended to restrict the ability of prior devices to check for and correct these errors. Prior apparatus have been forced to sacrifice speed for efficiency, or vice versa.
There is a need in the art for a seedling transfer apparatus that minimizes the disturbance to the plant seedling, increases the transfer rate between the seed flat and the pot flat, and improves the efficiency of these transfers. There is also a need for such an apparatus that is fully automatic so that only minimal human interaction is required in the transfer operation.